TPPs conclude hunger-strike as University students vow to watch politicians

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 October 2018, 18:04 GMT]The student activists of Jaffna University who walked for four days passing 200 km from Jaffna to Anuradhapura along with the representatives of the grassroots organisations, the Tamil National Peoples’ Front politicians and the students from Eastern University met the Tamil political prisoners in Anuradhapura and urged the TPPs to end their hunger strike. The activists vowed to watch the Tamil politicians who are dealing with the SL President Maithiripala Sirisena and the SL Government authorities in Colombo to act without fail in future. The request comes after the public organisations met NPC Chief Minister Justice C.V. Wigneswaran in Jaffna on Friday and resolved to take responsibility for the advancement of the TPPs cause. Rev. Fr. S. Sakthivel, who is coordinating the mobilisation met the TPPs as part of a 10-member group, which was allowed to meet the TPPs on Saturday.

The Tamil National Alliance should make the TPPs issue a top priority in its dealings with the southern leaders, the activists said.

If the TNA failed to act, the activist group would launch protests against all those who are failing to work, they said. The TNA should not extend its support to SL State's budget without securing a favourable answer to the TPPs, they said.

ITAK Leader Mavai Senathirajah met the TPPs earlier on Saturday morning. He was also urging the TPPs to conclude the hunger-strike and promised action.

Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan had taken up the matter with SL President Maithiripala Sirisena, who has given just another date, 17 October, to look into the issue.

Mr Maithiripala uses to propose a date promising to look into the TPPs issue. Then, he postpones it. He has done so at least three times within the past four weeks, the TPPs said.

The protesting groups have also failed to address the external powers, who are the real culprits sustaining the paradigm of inaction in the island, political observers in Jaffna opined.